Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth (2024)

For years I had followed traditional Christian writings and practices, growing ever more disenchanted with the hollowness of the experience. In my private readings I'd immersed myself in wider and deeper worlds, searching, searching.

In 1984 I was doing some training in Estes Park and went to hear Amy Grant at the YMCA of the Rockies. I wanted to hear her do Angels Watching Over Me in person, and that done, I browsed the bookstore before heading back to my cabin.

This book, recently published at the time, grabbed me so aggressively I nearly fell on the floor. It was the missing link I'd been searching for, the connection between Christian thought and spiritual practice. I stayed up all night reading it, and to this day consider it one of the most important books in my life. It set my life loose, on a journey of discovery that continues to this day.

This is soul-rocking stuff, for those who are ready for it.

Little did I realize at the time it would speak to others with the same power: Richard Foster's ideas have gone on to become a movement. My spirituality doesn't lend itself to industrial-strength support systems so I haven't done much to keep up with all he's doing. But from what I can tell the heart of his message has remained the same, and he has stayed true to the quiet voice that knocked me on the floor those many years ago.

If you wonder how you can find the deeper layers of the teachings of the revolutionary Jesus, you could do worse than to spend some time with Foster.

I have mixed feelings about Celebration of Discipline. On one hand, I struggled with Foster’s subjective terminology and mystic approach. At times I found myself wondering exactly what he meant, and in turn wondering whether I would agree with him if I discovered exactly what he meant. Part of this is a difference theological emphasis, but I suspect it also comes down to a difference in personality. Some people like objective descriptions of neat and tidy concepts (like me), whereas others prefer more subjective, open ended, provocative discussion (like Richard Foster, perhaps). This was particularly evident when Foster turned to practical descriptions of spiritual Disciplines that went beyond what is clear from Scripture. I've come to prefer the term “means of grace” to refer to these kinds of practices, which keeps the focus on God’s part, rather than Spiritual Disciplines, which puts the focus on my part. For these reasons, I can’t whole-heartedly get on board with Foster’s vision of the Christian life.

Nonetheless, I am drawn to his very experiential way of following Jesus. I long for deeper meditation on Scripture, deeper times of prayer. I loved the chapter on study. I do appreciate silence as a way of connecting with God; I do seek to live a simple life. I would like to be more open to communal expressions of faith; I would like to express more unaffected joy. And so I was encouraged and motivated by this book. I won’t be adopting the life of an evangelical mystic anytime soon, but there’s plenty I can learn from Richard Foster.

Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing himself.
Leo Tolstoy

I first read this book in 1996 and loved it. I re-read it in 2005 and got even more out of it the second time. The book is inspiring and is a good reminder of the way I can have a more Christ-centered life through discipline.

Foster deals first with the inward disciplines: meditation, prayer, fasting, study. Then, he moves on to the outward disciplines: simplicity, solitude, submission, and service. The corporate disciplines: confession, worship, guidance, and celebration (these last two didn't resonate with me as much, but were still worthwhile).

What I love the most about the book is his reminder that the pursuit of a Christ-centered life is all about change and bringing ourselves closer to God. To pray is to change. To confess is to change. To worship is to change.

The idea is that daily scripture study and prayer is not to check off a to-do list, but actually change my life and who I am. The disciplines themselves are worthless without change.

I like the idea of incorporating meditation into my prayer time and allowing for more silence. I like the idea of emptying myself through meditation and then allowing myself to be filled with God's love. To let myself be open to God's will.

The chapter on simplicity was very interesting and just what I needed to hear. (Foster has an entire book dedicated to the subject of simplicity that I recommend, Freedom of Simplicity - if you're interested in a book that doesn't have a Christian point of view I recommend Voluntary Simplicity by Duane Elgin). Foster does a good job of inspiring change and encouraging you to start where you are at now.

I just finished this gem. Although it's taken me some time to get through (due to such a busy schedule), I was disciplined enough to stick with it...See what I did there by celebrating my discipline. In all seriousness, I am very glad I read this book. In particular the sections on worship, on meditation, and especially on the celebration of joy are fabulous.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who is seeking to go deeper with God. Surprisingly, even though our culture seems emphatic about the need for the spontaneous and passionate expression of our love affection towards God, there is beauty to be found in the discipline of regiment. It goes far beyond that; our God is a God of order and structure.

Let me make this personal: In my relationship with God, I have tended to love him like a much loved relative I see often. What I mean by that is I am delighted to go a few days or weeks without much interaction in the relationship. My daily Bible can be erratic as well my prayer time. Then I end up feeling bad and, upon taking a visit to see my relative (as I continue with the analogy), I tell them, "I'm sorry It's been a few days (or weeks) since we've really spent quality time..."

Thus goes my journey. But, in this book, I see the benefit of setting up systems of disciplined interaction. Oh, and by the way, let me throw in that one of the reasons I am distant from God is that, sometimes when I come to him, he says nothing--or it just seems dry and stale. What I learned from this book is, that is normal and, even in those time, He appreciated my perseverance to "press through" and remain disciplined!

Not only really enjoyed the book, but learned a great deal of life-changing principles I will treasure moving forward in my relationship with God.

I listened to this book on Audible to and from work every day. While the first few chapters actually taught me a lot, I struggled to to maintain focus through the second half of the book.

A couple reasons for this:

1) I think I should have read a physical copy of this book. I KNOW I struggle to maintain focus listening to audio books if they aren't fast-paced and engaging. So the fact I thought I'd maintain focus on this was an error on my part.

2) The second half of the book really didn't teach me things I didn't already know. It felt a little elementary, but at the same time, they were great reminders on prayer, studying, joy, and a handful of other disciplines.

The first few chapters taught me so much. Meditation and fasting are two disciplines I don't do often, or at all, in my relationship with Jesus. And while I was listening to these chapters, I realize it's because I'm intimidated by them, thinking I don't know enough to do them well. Since reading this, I've tried meditating. And you know what? It's awesome! I literally started by setting a timer for 5-10 minutes and just sat in front of the Christmas tree thinking about all the things I have to be thankful for. I'm the kind of person who can't keep their brain on one track and end up thinking about the hole in my sock. But the book's explanation of breaking it down into small chunks and working up was simple but effective.

I'd rate this book a G.

Fourth or fifth time through this one. Such a goody. It takes some humility to read something so prescriptive and…. embodied? …. can’t find the right word. The cynic might find this book to be too practical to be spiritual bc we have this false notion that the wisdom is sort of ethereal or novel. This book is anything but ethereal or novel. It is ancient and pragmatic. And it is much needed by many Christians, most of all myself.

Classic twentieth-century guide to a deeper inner life and joy. As the title implies, discipline is not negative but positive. Foster explores twelve approaches to inner, outer and corporate discipline.

Gets better with every reading. In fact, I didn't get half of what Foster had to offer my first time through.

Although influenced by Dallas Willard (prior to his publication of The Spirit of the Disciplines), Richard J. Foster uses a different taxonomy in Celebration of Discipline than Willard uses in his book (Disciplines of Abstinence (solitude, silence, fasting, frugality, chastity, secrecy, sacrifice) and Disciplines of Engagement (study, worship, celebration, service, prayer, fellowship, confession, submission) (p. 158)). Foster’s division of spiritual disciplines is a trinity of Inward Individual (meditation, prayer, fasting, study), Outward Individual (simplicity, solitude, submission, service), and Corporate (confession, worship, guidance, celebration). Even a quick perusal of the lists should indicate that there are overlapping terms for maturing in discipleship.

A lot of people from the Protestant tradition are immediately dissuaded from the idea of spiritual disciplines because they are so focused on the idea of grace. Grace, of course, is both the beginning and the sustaining of spiritual growth, but growth is growth toward something. Foster points out that the motivation toward establishing spiritual discipline is simply a “longing for God” (p. 2) and that, as with meditation, we learn to benefit from these disciplines by doing these disciplines (p. 26). The book quickly establishes that we cannot overcome sin and become closer to God by willpower alone (p. 5), but a means of receiving grace (p. 7).

Fortunately, this is a very practical introduction to these disciplines that recognizes that one doesn’t simply become an expert practitioner or spiritual giant overnight. Rather, Foster quotes the contemplative monk, Thomas Merton, as stating that we are all “beginners” all of our lives (p. 2). Although my summary of this volume may seem somewhat superficial, Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth is the kind of book that requires several readings and plenty of contemplation in order to get the most out of it. In fact, I rarely use a study guide when I’m digesting a devotional book, but I greatly benefited from the published study guide for this one.

Here are some of the ideas which were useful for me. In discussing meditation, Foster notes that the purpose of Eastern meditation is detachment from the world while Christian meditation is not merely trying to empty the evil, but fill ourselves with the good (p. 21). The book urges using both our memory and our imagination to meditate upon Scripture until it literally becomes God’s living word specifically to us (p. 29). As in his work on prayer, Foster quotes Martin Luther as stating that he is “so busy” that he must spend hours in prayer each day (p. 34). “Prayer is like any other work; we may not feel like working, but once we have been at it for a bit, we begin to feel like working.” (p. 45)

“Fasting is feasting,” says Foster (p. 55) to introduce the idea that fasting sets one free from the tyranny of desire. He cautions readers about jumping right into a long fast, suggesting several practical ideas for moving gradually into the experience. He also emphasizes four steps in study: 1) repetition (p. 64), 2) concentration (p. 65), 3) comprehension (p. 66), and 4) reflection (p. 66). I was impressed with his warning under study that, “All too many people rush to the application process and bypass the interpretation stage.” (p. 69)

Upon reaching the outward disciplines of the individual, Foster warns that the discipline of simplicity is not simply ascetism (p. 84). Three keys to simplicity are: 1) treat all as a gift from God, 2) ask all to be cared for by God, and 3) make all available to others (p. 88). Practical activities with regard to simplicity are: 1) buy for usefulness, not status (p. 90), 2) reject anything which has a tendency to become addictive in you (p. 90), 3) habitually give things away (p. 91), 4) be skeptical of advertising (p. 92), 5) enjoy things without owning them (p. 93), 6) get close to the earth (p. 93), 7) avoid instant gratification (p. 93), 8) use simple, honest speech (p. 93), 9) reject anything that requires oppression of others (p. 94), and 10) shun anything that doesn’t help you put the Kingdom of God first (p. 95).

Foster quotes an old proverb on silence: “All those who open their mouths, close their eyes!” (p. 98). Silence is difficult, but silence indicates trust (p. 100). He also indicates that there is something of a paradox with regard to silence, “If we are silent when we should speak, we are not living in the Discipline of silence. If we speak when we should be silent, we again miss the mark.” (p. 99)

Perhaps the most surprising discussion is to find the Discipline of solitude listed among the Outward Individual disciplines. The essence of the idea is that we have to experience solitude in order to prepare ourselves to be with people. Thomas Merton is quoted with regard to solitude as indicating that it helps him love his brothers (p. 108). Again, Foster is very practical, offering insight on celebrating “little solitudes” on pages 105-6.

With submission, Foster is quite frank about bad teaching on submission which leads to self-hatred (p. 110). The purpose of the Discipline of submission is to liberate us from the tyranny of our own wills (pp. 111, 113) not to psychologically flagellate ourselves. On pages 122-3, he lists seven acts of submission: 1) to God, 2) to Scripture, 3) to family, 4) to neighbors and those around us, 5) to the believing community, 6) to the broken and despised, and 7) to the world. Noting that some people think submission means to put yourself and family at harmful risk, Foster cautions that, “Revolutionary subordination commands us to live in submission to human authority until it becomes destructive.” (p. 124)

I particularly needed to see Foster’s discussion of “true service” as not being about “results” or being a means of manipulation (pp. 128-9). He urges hiddenness (p. 130) and for believers not to feel contempt for small things (p. 136). But perhaps the most revolutionary teaching for me in this volume was on the ministry of forgiveness. Foster cites Jesus command to forgive (John 20:23) and points out how we miss opportunity to assure and bless our brothers and sisters by not practicing the act of verbal, specific forgiveness (p. 148).

I didn’t really gain much from the discussion of worship, but liked the phrasing which suggested that worship forms are the “wineskin” or vessels for us to receive the presence of God (p. 159). I also liked the phrase about meeting God in the kitchen in order to meet God at church (p. 162). Perhaps, the most helpful ideas were that worship begins by stilling creaturely activity (p. 166) and continues as praise brings emotion into worship (p. 168).

The discussion on corporate guidance (not the same as in corporate organization) was interesting in that Foster observed how decisions in the early church were regularly agreed upon by using other spiritual disciplines: prayer, worship, fasting, etc. (p. 177). He cited a practice called ��sounding the call” in which one church has a regular time at the end of a service in which people share what they believe God wants them to do and members of the church volunteer to come up and pray, share, counsel them (p. 181). The last discussion was on celebration. His conclusion was that joy is the end result of building the disciplines (p. 193). Celebration, then, frees us of an inflated view of our self-importance and of our tendency toward a judgmental spirit (pp. 196-7).

I don’t know what I was expecting when I ordered this book, but it probably wasn’t this. Celebration of Discipline is honest, practical, and humble. I think I was expecting something else. It isn’t the most brilliant theological work that I’ve read in recent days, but it is a devotional/theological work that I will use over and over again as I try to let God work through me.

O carte bună pentru orice credincios. Chiar merită citită și apoi pusă în practică.
Ideile sunt prezentate foarte simplu, fără se piardă din vedere însemnătatea lor profundă. Un lucru de mare folos sunt exemplele practice ale acestor discipline.

Având in vedere ca autorul sugerează pentru studiu o disciplină pe săptămână, poate am parcurs-o cam repede (o disciplină pe zi), dar țin cartea aproape și cu siguranță voi mai reveni asupra ei, sau măcar asupra unor idei.

This book is excellent and I used it a bit more like a class than a read. I really want to go back and do a re-read again!

The best verse I know to summarize this book would be Jesus’ ironic statement to the Pharisees, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!”

The book is a blend of mysticism and unorthodox teaching. Someone with any acquaintance with scripture will soon find themselves at odds with this book. The author’s aim seems to be to waste the time of those who read this book with his “insights” into the “inner life.” From reading this book, I would assume Foster has a gastro intestinal disease as his constant grumbling about the “inner person” and “inner light” read as someone unfamiliar with Biblical Christianity but quite familiar with irritable bowl syndrome.

Foster displays in this book that in his best moments he can say something obvious and plain; however, most of the time he is simply confused or downright wrong. It would seem best that he takes up his own discipline of silence and eradicate this book from the poor bookshelves of many Americans. The fact that this book is one of the top ten most influential books for Americans identifying as Christians over the last 50 or so years is severely troubling.

Personally, this is now the worst book I have ever read.

So, in establishing my "goodreads" library, I thought it was wise to begin with a book that has served to inform, as well as transform my character. What better place to start than with Foster's classic. Certainly, a must read for any believer, but especially important for those of us who call ourselves "leaders" in the church. This book establishes the starting point for true leadership...learning to place ourselves in God's presence where he can begin to do the work of transformation in us. Foster's list of twelve disciplines, I've learned, is certainly not exhaustive, but they are an excellent place to start in the process of becoming firmly rooted in the Spirit's ability to transform us into the character of Christ.

This has cemented itself as a reread-every-few-years, keep-a-copy-on-my-shelf-forever book. Will be recommending to everyone I talk w in the coming weeks

Recitită acum, pe îndelete, încercând să și aplic în viața mea aceste discipline, cartea, a avut un impact semnificativ față de lectura inițială de acum câțiva ani, pe vremea când eram un proaspăt ucenic.
Deși m-am ferit în a trata aceste discipline ca pe "trucuri" cu efecte magice care să mă ducă la nivelul următor de spiritualitate, efectul parcurgerii lor ( in ordine aleatorie, așa cum mă îndemna Duhul) a produs schimbări majore în omul meu lăuntric. Nu le consider în ele însele ca fiind virtuoase, nici nu vreau a le face lege, dar nu pot nega faptul că am nevoie să mă port aspru cu mine pentru a înlătura zgomotul de fond al lumii, care mă împiedică în a intra în profunzimile vieții și ale relației cu Hristos.
" Creat după chipul lui Dumnezeu, trec prin viață ca un călător în drum spre eternitate, însă, chipul fiindu-mi degradat, trebuie să învăț cum să meditez, să mă închin, să gândesc "
Aplecarea asupra lor cu smerenia venită din realitatea că nu sunt un creștin disciplinat după atâția ani de la prima lecturare, a produs o mică și tainică reușită de creștere. Sunt mulțumitoare!

Foster vine cu sfaturi practice și texte bine alese menite să fie citite pe parcursul unei săptămâni astfel încât aplicarea disciplinelor devine cât mai facilă cititorului. Și prin această lectură am primit aceeași motivație de a trăi intenționat!

Meditatia, rugaciunea, postul, studiul, simplitatea, solitudinea, supunerea, slujirea, marturisirea, inchinarea, calauzirea si celebrarea; poate parea ca pentru noi, mirenii, o seama din cele de mai sus sunt exagerate, neaplicabile, greoaie, dar luand pas cu pas disciplinele insemnate de Foster, am descoperit un ghid cat se poate de practic pentru a lumina putin drumul ce duce la apropierea de Dumnezeul nevazut.
Fiecare capitol se incheie cu sugestii de aprofundare si propuneri de texte din Scriptura, asupra carora cititorul este indemnat sa cugete in decursul unei saptamani, ceea ce s-a dovedit a fi un bun mod de integrare a informatiei.

"Adevarata evlavie nu ii indeparteaza pe oameni de lume, ci ii ajuta sa traiasca mai bine in ea, indemnandu-i sa-si dea toata silinta ca sa o indrepte."

To be clear I'm not your conventional Christian, so bear that in mind if you go any further, and please forgive any irreverence. I suppose many would say I'm not a Christian at all, but luckily all that is between me and God and not His other children. As with most things, I plan to take what I can use from this and leave the rest. Thankfully there is plenty I can use. I found it inspiring, plan to reread it, and will probably find other parts inspiring that didn't speak to me this time. I read this because it's what my Bible study group (where I stick out like a turd in a punchbowl) was doing this session. I go to learn, and grow, and all that happy crappy, and I discovered that I already do a lot of things that are suggested in this book, that some of the others in the group are seeing these kinds of things for the first time, and yet they're the ones with their lives together while I'm at sea and can't tell my ass from a hole in the ground sometimes. Oh well. I still stand by doing a lot of things suggested in this book, for these kinds of things have moved me in the right direction.

There are 12 disciplines grouped into three categories: inner, outer, and corporate. I didn't find out until halfway through the study what these indicated. Inner disciplines are ones you do within yourself (meditation, prayer, fasting, study). The outer ones are the same, but others can see you doing them and perhaps the results (simplicity, solitude, submission, service... Foster loves his S's). Corporate disciplines involve interacting with others (confession, worship, guidance, celebration). A lot of these build on each other, and if you're swinging all of them, you're probably happy, joyous, and free (or celebrating, if you will).

I didn't agree with everything, but opened my mind as much as it would go. Some things with simplicity and guidance were hard to swallow. In fact, I believe my feeling was "f*ck that bullsh*t." Much in simplicity was akin to Marxism which I'm completely against, but there's a caveat that made it more palatable. Giving of one's own free will instead of the state forcing you to do it. That makes all the difference in the world. One is freedom, the other is slavery.

Guidance involved allowing others to make some decisions for you, and adhering to the will of a particular group who has prayed the answer for you... If I ever tell you what God's will is for you, then you need to tell me that I've lost my mind. I don't believe I can ever know God's will for anyone but myself. If you come to me with a problem, I can offer my thoughts which may or may not be divinely inspired, and then I need to let it go. I feel it's often God's will for me to say what I said, but whether or not the listener takes it to heart is another matter entirely.

The only discipline I took major umbrage with was, surprisingly, prayer. The thoughts in there were so out of line with my own way of praying that I didn't even attend that session for fear that I would flip my sh*t completely; I'm sure that study was improved by my absence. My prayers are for God's will and the wherewithal to see it. Use me to speak Your words, do Your work here on Earth this day, etc. That's how I roll it out in the morning, I give a thankee sir in the evening, and throw out some feelers throughout the day, and it doesn't need to be any more complicated than that. If I'm praying for someone else it's for His will to be done there also, or I'm pissed off at the person and trying to get over it. The chapter in this book even went so far as to suggest that my prayer can change God's mind. Why? I figure He's got it under control even if I don't see it at the time. And though George Carlin was an atheist, he can explain my sentiments here more succinctly than I ever could.

"What about the divine plan? Remember that? The divine plan. Long time ago God made a divine plan. Gave it a lot of thought. Decided it was a good plan. Put it into practice. And for billions and billions of years the divine plan has been doing just fine. Now you come along and pray for something. Well, suppose the thing you want isn't in God's divine plan. What do you want him to do? Change his plan? Just for you? Doesn't it seem a little arrogant? It's a divine plan. What's the use of being God if every run-down schmuck with a two dollar prayer book can come along and f*ck up your plan?"

That's close enough for government work, I reckon. More importantly, though, is I know how my mind works. I suffer from expectations which are simply resentments under construction. If I pray for something to change, then I start to expect that it will. I can't help it; that's just what happens. If those expectations aren't met, I get resentful, and then I have to do a lot of work on myself I could've avoided if I'd just left the thing alone in the first place. If a rock I'm holding is drowning me I can let it go at any time, but it works better if I just don't grab a hold of it at all.

And then he started talking about praying to remove faults... I could see it coming from a mile away, and sure enough it showed up: "pray the gay away." Being one of God's favored fa*gs I witness firsthand the ignorance behind this kind of tripe. I'm sexually attracted to men, there ain't a thing I can do about it, and I refuse to spend any more time making myself miserable trying to change it. God and I've talked about it, He's cool with it, and that will just have to be good enough for sanctimonious straightwads who think they know better. If something changes, I'll address it when it comes around... This seems to have struck a nerve again. Wrap it up for us, Karl.

"The Bible says two men ought not lay together, mmmm hmmm. But I don't reckon the Good Lord would send anybody like you to Hades."

Enough of my bellyaching. What was good about this? Most everything else. There were some tall orders, but I can understand where he was coming from with all of them. Surprisingly my favorite discipline was fasting. I've done a couple 24-hour deals since we read that chapter, and have found the results beneficial. I confess I had an ulterior motive (weight loss), but did it as suggested anyway. I felt called to try it out, and obeyed. (Obedience is a major theme throughout, which is to be expected. It's a religious book after all). The idea is that every time you feel a hunger pang, you pray about it. Mine went like this: "Here's another hunger pang, God. It's yours if you want it. If not, I reckon I'll hold onto it a while longer." Sometimes it went, sometimes not, but my focus was always diverted to something else. The idea behind it was to get to the "pray without ceasing" thing Paul is always going on about. I often wonder how insecure God must be that He needs my attention 24-7, but the answers to such questions are above my pay grade, and I just roll on regardless. Sound alarming to give up my will blindly? Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. I don't see where any harm has come to me from doing these kinds of things, and the beauty of it is that if I don't like the results I can quit doing it at any time.

Here's a quick run through on some of the others I got something from. Meditation is opening yourself to receive, and here's one place where Foster kind of contradicted himself. He says the posture you use isn't important at all, then he talked about the posture he used and immediately said why it should be done that way and how doing it some other ways might not work as well. Study is mostly paying attention to things around you to receive the Word.

Confession involves, well, obviously confessing. Letting another (the right other, mind) know it all. One thing I liked was the notion that the person hearing the confession has the power to give Jesus' forgiveness afterward. There's scripture to back it up, but I'm too lazy to look it up right now; read the book for further details. That explains a few things involving confessions I've done and those I've heard. I didn't see it in the terms described above, but the results were the same. Celebration was pretty awesome. As I mentioned before all of these build one on the other, and celebration is at the end for a reason. If you're doing all these things then joy is a part of you. I remember joy. I'm inspired to try to find it again, but it will take work.

Worship didn't do too much for me because it involves so much interaction with other people, but maybe I'm just not there yet. Several parts of service, submission, and solitude almost seemed interchangeable, and I'll need to reread them to get a better understanding. I thought I knew all about service since I try to see where I can be helpful to God or others throughout the day, but the book took it in a different direction, not to mention a rather demanding one. I thought I was good at that sh*t, but it turns out this young grasshopper has a lot to learn.

There was some pooh-poohing of these disciplines as practiced in other religions and spiritual settings, but those were parts I decided to leave behind. I believe trying these things could be helpful for anyone.

One last negative note, say sorry. Foster is better read than viewed. There's a video component to this book, and I'm so glad we did only the first one. He is annoying to watch, his speaking style is not above reproach, and I got so distracted by it that I couldn't hear the message. There's also a smugness about him that seems to eventually settle on a lot of people who deal long in the preaching profession, especially if they get airtime. I don't believe he's insincere at all, but it's better to read him than watch or listen to him. At least I found it so.

I think anyone interested in trying to do the whole getting-with-God-to-live-a-better-life-for-Him thing could benefit from this book. It also works well for anyone trying to be more spiritual which is really the same thing just wearing a different suit of clothes as far as I'm concerned. But be careful as there are some tall orders in here. I can dig most of them even if I'd rather not, and I think I spelled out the exceptions. The cool thing, though, is that those exceptions for me might work just fine for you. Check it out.

This book is so powerful. It beautifully describes, goes into detail, gives examples for, and connects all of the spiritual rhythms in a way that makes them seem realistic, attainable, and necessary for the day to day life. This is a book I will likely come back to yearly, taking something different from it each time. It has opened my eyes to the ways I can rest in the Spirit and live my day to day life! I’m excited for the ways I’ve been able to apply this to my life and will continue to do so.

A very helpful overview of certain spiritual disciplines with lots of ideas on how to specifically implement them. It was a very practical book, which I appreciated. I also felt like the author did an excellent job of clearly differentiating what was scripture and what was his ideas. I didn’t necessarily agree with all of his ideas and perspectives, but I loved the vast majority of the book. Definitely one I will revisit in the future!

Richard Foster is a deep well and, within these pages, he imparts wisdom in a stark and quiet way.
Some of the disciplines were more relevant than others and some disciplines I would choose to live out differently in my life.

“The purpose of the disciplines is freedom. Our aim is the freedom not the discipline.”

What an impactful book! I love the logical arrangement of chapters, the frank yet nuanced writing style, the direct applicability, and the church history Foster weaves together. This inventory of the spiritual disciplines is full of practical steps at how to develop practices into one’s life to intentionally grow closer to, and into the image of, God. Yet at the same time it is seasoned with the language of grace, keeping at bay the lurking inclination towards legalism. I will continue to refer back to this book for years to come for wisdom, encouragement, and it’s references.

Joy as the motor of the disciplines is a line I will be chewing on for a while.

I really loved this book when I was a Neoevangelical. But then I grew Reformed, and it helped me that I ended up pinpointing what so discomfitted me when first reading it: its emphasys on mystical disciplines deviate from Scriptures and end up deemphasysing grace in favour of a focus on works.

Not that it cannot be read with profit. We sure can benefit of spiritual disciplines of prayer, Bible study, meditation &c. But we have to be aware, for example when it deviates from Biblical thoughtful, thinking meditation into visualisation of Jesus that borders on idolatry and idol making.

The best book of 2017 for me!!!! I read this all year with 2 friends- taking each month to study a discipline and we discussed them over an app called Voxer. This book was life changing- the chapter on prayer and fasting especially. I recommend the audio book as you can stop and listen again and write it down if you want. The author has so much wisdom and I will read this again for sure!

A book that lead me to think deeply into what it really means to actively celebrate the discipline that brings Christ the most glory, and leads me into the fullness of life he invites us into through his son Jesus.

Read this book in conjunction with a small group discussion over a long period. An amazing work, full of important insightful practices.

In our day heaven and earth are on tiptoe waiting for the emergence of a Spirit-led, Spirit-intoxicated, Spirit-empowered people. All of creation watches expectantly for the springing up of a disciplined, freely gathered, martyr people who know in this life the life and power of the kingdom of God. It has happened before. It can happen again.

Indeed, in movements all over the world we are now beginning to see the breaking forth of the apostolic church of the Spirit. Many are having a deep and profound experience of an Emmanuel of the Spirit--God with us; a knowledge that in the power of the Spirit Jesus has come to guide his people himself; an experience of his leading that is as definite and as immediate as the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night.

In Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth, Richard Foster examines three primary forms of Christian disciplines: Inward Disciplines (Meditation, Prayer, Fasting, and Study), Outward Disciplines (Simplicity, Solitude, Submission, and Service), and Corporate Disciplines (Confession, Worship, Guidance, and Celebration). Each chapter provides interesting quotes and anecdotes from a variety of writers, but Foster fails to provide anything substantive. He hints at what he means; he employs scripture and writings--but he never really pins down what exactly he means. As a reader I came across some useful fuzzy idea or concepts, but they were often associated with practices I would never employ.

Take his take on prayer, for example. Seems straight-forward enough in practice, but Foster pulls in asking intercessions directly. As a practicing Christian, you should be wrapped in the Holy Spirit deep enough to intuit God's will; your prayer is not requesting God to change His will in your favor; rather, your prayer is God's will in action. If healing or comfort fail to manifest, then the problem, my friend, lies with you, not God. As Foster puts it:

We know the problem has been found and fixed by seeing whether or not the TV works. It is the same with prayer. We can determine if we are praying correctly if the requests come to pass. If not, we look for the "block"; perhaps we are praying wrongly, perhaps something within us needs changing, perhaps there are new principles of prayer to be learned, perhaps patience and persistence are needed. We listen, make the necessary adjustments, and try again. We can know that our prayers are being answered as surely as we can know that the television set is working.

What the hell is Foster advocating here? When my prayers for a dying relative failed and the relative died--it was akin to trying to turn on a TV which isn't properly plugged? This kind of confidence is dangerous and unsettling. As Christians, we should pray with confidence and we should pray with faith--but we should not assume unanswered prayers are the result of "praying wrongly" or that "something within us needs changing." That's charismatic crap--and I don't want any of it near my religious life.

Foster goes on to note democracy is a horrible thing to employ when making decisions (he advocates "theocracy" like they use in Iran or Afghanistan). He advocates not buying new cars every year or wearing the latest fashion. He has a "divine urge" to "get acquainted" with the lady at the gas station cash register in order to pursue another "avenue to worship." He actually states there "is no leveler of caste systems like festivity." As if Christmas in Hyannis Port and in the slums of Chicago display no caste.

It's mercifully short, and it's organized neatly. But Foster has some odd notions regarding spirituality which I do not fully agree with. He advocates some sound practices, but he cannot avoid throwing in some charismatic nonsense which ends up spoiling much of the batch.

If you must (and, really, you don't), read with caution and a discerning heart and mind, Dear Reader.

A good starter on 12 spiritual disciplines and an extensive portal to great resources digging deeper in each of them - especially christian classics, of which there’s an excellent bibliography with short descriptions at the end ("The Great Conversation"), from 4th to 21th century that will make you sigh the “so many books so little time" cry over and over).

The disciplines described are beautifully summarised and linked in the ending chapter:
"We have seen how meditation heightens our spiritual sensitivity which, in turn, leads us into prayer. Very soon we discover that prayer involves fasting as an accompanying means. Informed by these three Disciplines, we can effectively move into study which gives us discernment about ourselves and the world in which we live. Through simplicity we live with others in integrity. Solitude allows us to be genuinely present to people when we are with them. Through submission we live with others without manipulation, and through service we are a blessing to them. Confession frees us from ourselves and releases us to worship. Worship opens the door to guidance. All the Disciplines freely exercised bring forth the doxology of celebration."

This book did a fantastic job of covering some basics, but also going in depth on the how and why. I learned so much and hope to reread this one.

This book is wonderfully out of step with everyone - a bit like reading a gentle and orthodox Henry David Thoreau. It is difficult for me to fathom that such a marvelous book on Christian spirituality could avoid all reference to Baptism and the Lord's Supper (Foster writes in the Quaker tradition), and I have some reservations about his chapters on worship and guidance. However, the chapters on fasting, simplicity, and submission are - dare I say - almost thriling in their un-American Biblical piety. I felt by turns chastened and excited throughout - it is not difficult to see why Christianity Today included it in the list of top 10 most significant works of the 20th century.

If you appreciated this book, let me also commend to you my favorite book on Christian spirituality of all time, John Kleinig's Grace Upon Grace.

This is yet another book that has been on my list for quite some time. It’s a classic for a reason. Foster does an incredible job of describing these different spiritual disciplines. My favorite chapters were Simplicity and Celebration- two things that the Western church has sadly lost touch with.

I think this book probably functions best as a reference for whichever discipline you might be interested in diving deeper into. I can see myself coming back to particular chapters instead of the book as a whole.

There is a lot of wisdom packed into this book. Wisdom that has withstood decades of change in the church and the world around us. This wisdom is timeless because it involves breaking down what it looks like to truly walk with Jesus, not just follow the spiritual trends. This book is a pretty detailed explanation of the basics, but it’s the basics nonetheless. It’s always nice to get back to the basics.